WRC
Solberg lands first blow in Sardinia WRC finale
Oliver Solberg made the perfect start to his FIA World Rally Championship title bid by winning Thursday evening’s opening stage of Rally Italia Sardegna.
The Toyota Gazoo Racing driver, who arrived in Sardinia 21 points behind championship leader Elfyn Evans, set the pace through the 2.08km Ittiri Arena Show with a time of 2min 01.4sec.
Solberg was 0.8sec quicker than nine-time world champion Sébastien Ogier, while Evans completed a Toyota lockout of the top three, 1.1sec off the lead.
With 35 points available across the weekend, Solberg knows he needs a near-perfect rally if he is to overturn Evans’ advantage and claim his maiden world title.
“The goal is simple, but to achieve it is a different story,” he said. “Thirty-five points is what I need to get. I will do my best and try to stay out of trouble.
“After a rollercoaster season, somehow I’m still in the fight.”
Evans was paired head-to-head with his nearest championship rival Sami Pajari on the spectator-friendly opening test and edged the Finn by 0.4sec. Pajari finished fourth overall, 1.5sec from Solberg’s benchmark.
Despite holding a 17-point lead over Pajari, Evans made clear that protecting his advantage will not be an option when the rally moves onto Sardinia’s loose gravel roads on Friday.
“I’m feeling alright at the moment,” he said. “I would say I’m looking forward to it, but I think tomorrow will be tough.
“We are here to drive like usual and try to do a good job, even though it will be quite challenging. To do that [win the title], you have to drive well. We are not in a position to cruise around here.”
Ogier split the title contenders with second-fastest time after defeating Thierry Neuville in their head-to-head run.
“It is only a short start, but it is nice to see so many people,” Ogier said. “It is a great way to start the weekend. Tomorrow will be very different and slippery. Hopefully the dust won’t be an issue.”
Neuville completed the top five, 2.3sec off Solberg, with Hyundai team-mate Dani Sordo just 0.1sec further back.
Sordo endured a difficult start to the rally despite setting a competitive stage time. The Spaniard had already incurred a 10sec penalty for arriving late at TC0 following damage sustained in shakedown, before collecting a further 10sec penalty for a jump start on SS1.
“We made a small mistake in shakedown but, thanks to the mechanics, they repaired the car,” said Sordo, who is competing alongside new co-driver Patricia Sáiz. “We will try to compensate with a good rally.”
Takamoto Katsuta was seventh fastest, followed by Adrien Fourmaux, Jon Armstrong and Josh McErlean.
The rally moves onto Sardinia’s demanding gravel roads on Friday, where road cleaning and hanging dust are expected to become major factors in the three-way championship fight.
